David Archuleta Christmas from the Heart

David Archuleta's new album, “Christmas from the Heart,” is filled with entrancing, traditional Christmas songs as well as captivating carols in many languages.

When I first saw the album art, I didn't love it. The cover is very bland – a white background and a picture of Archuleta with some colored snowflakes. The title is written in calligraphy. It wasn't original or impressive, but after I listened to the first few songs, my opinion changed completely.

The album opens with a beautiful rendition of “Joy to the World.” The first 30 seconds aren't anything special but at the end, Archuleta kicks out jaw-dropping riffs and amazing high notes. His mature voice is well-suited to sing these carols. I was hooked.

This album features many traditional carols as well as a few contemporary and foreign ones. Songs like “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” (a duet with Charice Pempengco), “Melodies of Christmas,” and “I'll Be Home for ­Christmas” offer a unique and upbeat spin to the album. “Riu Riu Chiu” and “Pat-a-pan” blend in perfectly with the more traditional carols to create an elegant and diverse mix of Christmas tunes.

Listening to Archuleta sing favorites like “O Holy Night” and “Silent Night” made the butterflies in my stomach stir and gave my whole body chills of joy. His voice brings these normally flat carols to life and makes you want to play them again and again.

“Christmas from the Heart” is the perfect way to celebrate the holiday season. It's a great gift for music lovers of any age. Archuleta's new CD will have you ready to rock around the Christmas tree and sing along with this new spin on traditional holiday music.

Thanks for the nice article about David's "Christmas From The Heart" cd. I love every song on this beautiful cd. He made the traditional songs sound new again and songs like "Pat A Pan" & "Riu Riu Chiu" are wonderful. I have listened to this cd several times now and each time I listen to it there are more things I like about it. "Melodies of Christmas" was co-written by David and has such a joyous pop feel to it. David Archuleta is truly one ... (more »)

Thank you for the article. Even though most of the songs on Christmas from the Heart are traditional David puts a new spin on them and they become totally new. He shows a soul-vibe in several of the songs that perfectly fits his voice. Listen more than once to this album to truly appreciate the artistry of David Archuleta.

David Archuleta continues to grow both as a performer and a song writer. He has shown a level of class and professionalism that I truly respect. It's been a blast watching his career since the Star Search days! What a VOICE!

Nice review. I have listened to the album on repeat now. I think it's great. I wish though that he wasn't sick when he was recording some of the songs. But that's what I admire about David, he makes the best of what he had at that time. I love Joy to The World, O Come All Ye Faithful, What Child Is This, Ave Maria, and of course I absolutely adore Pat a Pan and Riu Riu Chiu. I think those are going to be incredible when he performs them live. He is so amazing live. I wish prod... (more »)

I'm not a music critic by any means and I don't know how to write a good review, I just know what i like and what sounds great. So I have to say Christmas From The Heart sounds great and I really like it. Compared to other Christmas albums I have purchased in the past I would have to rate Christmas From The Heart as the best in recent years. Others are good but lack the sincere emotion as delivered by David. To me nothing can compare to David's voice and the feeling he puts... (more »)

This review could have been written by me as every word you said was as if you were saying exactly my thoughts on David's Christmas album! He is a superb talent and will be around for many more Christmases!!
Thank you!!

Thanks for the super and honest review! I know a few fans were hoping for David's 2nd album to be pop and were disappointed it was a Christmas album. If you are one of those fans, you have to hear this album. It is pure Archuleta - traditional Christmas with inventive arrangements and David's pop, soul and gospel touches. Check it out at last.fm. Even if you think you could never love a Christmas album, I think you will change your mind when you hear this one. And if you are young and... (more »)

Can someone please tell me why David Archuleta sold less than 16,000 Christmas Cd's when he has 250,000 fans on twitter alone? It doesn't add up

Kaitiereplied...Nov. 9, 2009 at 12:37 am

Hi JamieWonders,
Well, it is still pretty early for a lot of people to be buying Christmas music, and I wouldn't think it's a good idea to use number of Twitter followers as a sales-predictive measuring stick for any musician. As Christmas nears, we'll see how the album sells. David so far has done no promotion. I hope the album sells well because it is a great Christmas album.

violet4everreplied...Nov. 9, 2009 at 2:07 am

Christmas albums sell less than pop albums. David did very well for a Christmas album released pre-Halloween. Few stores will even put out Christmas albums until Halloween is over. It sold close to 17.000 the first week and the following two weeks were over 7000 copies each, for a total so far of 31,000 in just the US. The album is also for sale in Canada, UK, France, Germany, Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan and Japan. Also, though David has 250,000 Twitter followers, those f... (more »)